Related
I know that Ctrl+} will take you to the corresponding brace in Visual Studio, but say I'm in the middle of a gigantic function and I don't know where the top or the bottom is, is there a shortcut to get directly to the function declaration?
void function()
{
//so many lines of code
//can't see the top or the bottom curly brace
//can i get to the top of the function with a shortcut?
}
I have a fresh install of VS2017. As of 15.9.1, the default for me is Alt+Shift+[.
This is the shortcut for EditorContextMenus.Navigate.GoToContainingBlock. So you may have to execute this shortcut multiple times if you are a few block layers deep, but it'll get you where you want to go.
Alt+Ctrl+UP,Tab,Tab,Enter
This sequence will move you through Project selctor > Scope selector > Function selector > Current Function.
Ctrl+M,Ctrl+M
This sequence will toggle between collapse/expand current block.
Place cursor at any line that is immediately enclosed by the function. Collapse. Place cursor at the end of the collapsed function, i.e after { ... }. Expand the function to get to its last brace.
Note:
If you have difficulty in finding a line immediately enclosed by the function(for example, when the function has lots of nested blocks), you can always goto the beginning to collapse the function.
Update
With last updates Visual Studio, now default keyboard shortcut for EditorContextMenus.Navigate.GoToContainingBlock is Shift+Alt+[
Old Answer:
Visual Studio 2017 version 15.8.0 comes with a new shortcut Ctrl + Alt + UpArrow - Go to Enclosing Block.
Go to Enclosing Block (Ctrl + Alt + UpArrow) allows you to quickly
navigate up to the beginning of the enclosing code block.
Source
This command allows also move to function declaration if you are inside function.
If shortcut doesn't work for you
For the VSCode lovers, this key combination will bring you to the top of the function:
Ctrl-Shift-.
followed by ENTER
and for MAC users:
Cmd-Shift-.
followed by ENTER
I usually double press the white line that is located left of the code.
It closes the function but it also takes you to the declaration of the function.
You can do it with Macros for Visual Studio extension.
Here's the code for macros:
// BeginningOfFunction moves the caret to the beginning of the containing definition.
var textSelection = dte.ActiveDocument.Selection;
// Define Visual Studio constants
var vsCMElementFunction = 2;
var codeElement = textSelection.ActivePoint.CodeElement(vsCMElementFunction);
if (codeElement != null)
{
textSelection.MoveToPoint(codeElement.GetStartPoint());
dte.ActiveDocument.Activate();
}
It is one of the sample macros of the extension. Edited it a little, because for some reason sample didn't work for me. You can get to the end of the function by changing codeElement.GetStartPoint() to codeElement.GetEndPoint().
I found one trick in visual studio:
Place the cursor on the empty to get the context (name of the function), copy the name of the function, then click the drop down arrow where all functions will be listed, paste the function name, enter. Then you are at the beginning of that function!
Another alternative would be to use Edit.PreviousMethod. I prefer this option because even if your cursor lies in multiple nested block, you can get to the method definition in single keystroke! I have mapped Edit.PreviousMethod to ctrl + alt + , and Edit.NextMethod to ctrl + alt + . but you can set it to whatever you prefer.
To setup key binding, goto Tools.Options.Environment.Keyboard, then in Show Commands Containing textbox type edit.previousmethod, set focus on Press Shortcut Keys textbox and press the key combination you want, the hit Assign. Repeat for edit.nextmethod, then Ok.
There is a setting in Visual Studio 2010 to turn off copy and cut commands when the cursor is on a blank line and there is no selection. However, when the cursor is not on a blank line and you press ctrl+C, it always copies the entire line to the clipboard. I find this very irritating because I always highlight something first, copy it, then place the cursor where I want to paste it and press ctrl+V. However, sometimes I miss the v and hit the c, which replaces the text on the clipboard with the text of the current line and I have to start all over...
Does anyone know how to turn off copying when there is no selection, regardless of whether the cursor is on a blank line or not?
There is the option in the settings:
Go to Tools - Options -> Text Editor -> ALl Languages -> Apply Cut or Copy commands to blank lines when there is no selection
Also if you accidentally copied something into clipboard you can use following shortcut:
Ctrl+Shift+V – cycle through the clipboard ring.
EDITED:
It seems there is no option to turn of it because by default Ctrl-C is assigned to Edit.Copy command, which copies the current line if nothing is selected. However you can assign following macro to Ctrl-C and it should fix the issue:
Sub CopyOnlyIfSelection()
Dim s As String = DTE.ActiveDocument.Selection.Text
Dim n As Integer = Len(s)
If n > 0 Then
DTE.ActiveDocument.Selection.Copy()
End If
End Sub
I know this is old question, but as Macros are no longer natively supported in newer versions of Visual Studio, I thought I'd shared my new extension (cause I couldn't find any existing extensions): https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=KiwiProductions.CopyOnlySelection
Locked. This question and its answers are locked because the question is off-topic but has historical significance. It is not currently accepting new answers or interactions.
Now that Xcode 4 is officially released it's time for a follow up to my previous question: Hidden Features of Xcode
So what are they? What are those hidden little Xcode 4 hints & tips that you can't live without?
Please limit your tips to those that are new and specific to Xcode 4!
If you like your code to look as good as it runs, you've undoubtedly used #pragma mark - and #pragma mark <name> to provide a nice visual grouping in the Xcode class dropdown list. Xcode 4 now combines these into a single #pragma mark - <name>.
More on pragma mark.
shift-cmd-opt click on a symbol lets you tell Xcode exactly where in the UI you want the navigated-to file to open.
cmd-ret makes the version editor / assistant (the right hand pane) go away
shift-cmd-Y to hide the debugger
cmd-0 to hide the navigator (left pane)
cmd-[1..n] switch between navigators on left
cmd-opt-[1..n] switch between utilities (thing generally on right)
ctrl-[1..n] switch between various related files in the editor
Overall, Xcode 4 tries to keep things consistent w/the hot keys. Cmd is for mainline commands. Adding modifiers is for analogous commands focused on one particular sub-feature.
(These are just the four that come to mind as the my most pounded upon shortcuts that I'm using constantly! I'm sure it'll change over time as my workflow is refactored into the new hotness.)
Xcode 4 adds a new "Code Snippets" feature, accessible via View > Utilities > Code Snippet Library. To add a new code snippet, select some text in the editor view and drag it into the snippet library. You can either drag a snippet out and drop it in your code to use it, or, much more conveniently, assign a completion shortcut to it.
When you type in that series of letters, it will automatically show up in the code completion pop-up menu as you type your code. For example, among many others, I have a snippet set up so that typing "svk" will expand to setValue:<#value#> forKey:<#key#>. This can save a lot of typing and/or fishing around in the autocompletion menu for the methods and other code expressions you use the most. Xcode ships with a bunch of built-in snippets that come in very handy as well.
New shortcut I use most often: triple-finger swipe (up or down) to swap counterparts (between the interface and implementation files). No more hand acrobatics!
Thanks to https://twitter.com/xctotd/status/48148271759241216
shift-option-click on a file in the Groups and Files list Project Navigator, or hold shift-option while choosing a file from the Jump Bar.
You'll get a pop-over from which to pick where to open the file. New or existing tab, new or existing split (Assistant) editor, new window—every possible option is there.
Tabs in Xcode 4 are awesome. Each one maintains its own separate layout, so you can have multiple tabs with different things in them and have each one lain out appropriately.
I've been setting up my projects with three layouts—one for the project object, one for each nib (showing the owner's class's sources), and one for each class.
There is one bug here: As of 4.0, Xcode will reset the state (turning off any Assistants) of the active tab when you reopen the project. The workaround is to switch to a tab with no Assistants for Xcode to close before you close the project. I have filed this as Radar number 9178441.
ctrl-6 pops down within-file segment of jump bar (enables keyboard-controlled jump to methods)
cmd-{/} select previous / next tab
cmd-J navigate to any editor (but why oh why doesn't TAB then cycle between them?)
Editor ShortCuts
Cmd + Ctrl + up/down Jump between
.h & .m Files.
Cmd + Ctrl + Left/Right Jump between Previous
Edited Files/Next Edited files.
Layout Shortcuts
Cmd + 0 hide or show navigators
Cmd + opt + 0 hide or show inspectors
Cmd + Shift + Y hide or show debugger console.
Navigators Shortcuts
Cmd + 1 Project
Cmd + 2 Symbol
Cmd + 3 Search
Cmd + 4 Issue
Cmd + 5 Debug
Cmd + 6 BreakPoint
Cmd + 7 Log
Tab Switching & Jumping
Cmd + { Previous Tab
Cmd + } Next Tab
Cmd + j Select location to jump
Shift + Option + ClickFile Select location to open file
Cmd + Alt + Option + Click Select location to open Method
Inspectors
Cmd + Opt + 1 File Inspector
Cmd + Opt + 2 Quick Help
Cmd + Opt + 3 Identity Inspector
Cmd + Opt + 4 Attribute Inspector
Cmd + Opt + 5 Size inspector
Cmd + Opt + 6 Connection Inspector
Build Related
Cmd + B Build
Cmd + Shift + K Clean
Cmd + . top
Code Folding
Cmd + Alt + Left Minimize Current Method/Class/Interface
Cmd + Alt + Right Expand Current Method/Class/Interface
Cmd + Alt + Shift + Left Minimize All Method/Class/Interface
Cmd + Alt + Shift + Right Expand All Method/Class/Interface
Here's the first. Tabs! Xcode 4 has replaced Xcode 3's useful but rarely used "favorites bar" with persistent tabs. This means you can keep a working set of commonly used documents in your tab bar.
Not exactly a hidden feature as such - but the fact that the tabs are persistent is perhaps easily missed.
If you're having any sort of trouble with the indexing of your project (e.g. symbols not showing up in autocompletion), open the Organizer window, click the Projects tab, and use the "Delete" button to delete the derived data for your project. This will force a rebuild of the project's index, as well as tossing out any built products.
Some useful hotkeys for working on smaller screens are:
cmd-shift-y - Hide and show the console/debug area
cmd-0 - Hide and show the file navigation
You can now associate groups in the Project Navigator with folders on disk. It always bugged me before that the Xcode 3 file view may not represent the actual structure of the project on disk.
Create a new group, then with the new group highlighted, open the File Inspector. In the identity section on the right just below the 'Path' is a small icon, click this to open the file browser dialog allowing you to select the directory for this group.
If you hold the FN key then you can scan through your document with the cursorkeys, without moving the cursor
Jump bar:
if your write outside function:
// FIXME: A Bug
// TODO: Later
// ???: ???
// !!!: !!!
// MARK: This a mark
Will like:
Also you can search:
Click with Option(With Shift at the same time, you can choice another window), you can see a dialog letting you specify where the file should open:
Source control:
If you use svn or git, discard change is easy:
Interface buidler
In xcode 4.2, you can jump to interface builder here:
Click a ui object with Shift, it will show a list of all objects under the point.
Try this:
Select a ui object, hold Option, then move mouse over other objects. It will like:
Other
Hotkey: Shift+Command+O Open Quickly
Try:
#error message
#warning message
And read:
Writing and Editing Source Code
Text Editor:
Cmd-clicking on a class name will take you to the implementation (or header) file of that class, cmd-clicking on an object will take you to where the object is declared.
Alt-clicking will open a documenation popup for the object you clicked on.
Adding frameworks: You cannot simply do this by right-clicking on the project or a group (like in Xcode 3). You need to go to the project view, select your target and go to "Build Phases" tab. Frameworks can be managed under the "Link Binary with Libraries" section.
Setting target dependencies: Similar to the above, in the "Target Dependencies" section of the "Build Phases" tab.
Keep your archives safe -prior to installing Xcode 4 (from 3). You will lose them (most likely) and with them lose your ability to symbolicate your crash logs.
Delete action-BEWARE: "Delete" (instead of "Remove Reference Only") directly erases the file from your drive. It doesn't go into the Trash, so you cannot recover it.
cmd-J jumps to the editor, but if you have more than one editor open you get an overlay that has all of the open editors. you can use cmd-→ and cmd-← to switch between the open editors.
Also, if you are having a hard time finding an option or property for anything the utilites window is probably your best bet:
hide and show utilities: cmd-opt-0
Things that are commonly hidden here that aren't intuitive:
data model entity properties.data model propertiesxib properties
You don't need to declare IBAction - methods in .h File. & You can directly connect it in Interface Builder.
Example:
-(IBAction)btnLogInTapped:(id)sender {
// place following method in .m file of your code. save file. Open the
// .xib file of viewController
// click on files owner
// click on connection-inspector.
// you can view your methods under "received actions"
}
You don't need to declare variables, if you are creating property for it.
Example:
// a property declared in .h File of your view controller.
#property (nonatomic, retain) LogInVCtr *nxtLogInVCtr;
// synthesize above property in .m File
#synthesize nxtLogInVCtr;
// or
#synthesize nxtLogInVCtr = _nxtLogInVCtr;
// and you are done, you don't need to declare variable for it.
One of my favorites is the "Open Tab" behavior preference. If you go to "Behaviors" in Preferences, you can set it to go to a specific tab whenever a run starts. You can name the tab, something like "Debug" and Xcode4 will create it for you if it doesn't exist, and take you there when you start debugging. You can configure this tab just how you like it for debugging sessions, and it will stick that way after you close it, so whenever you do a run Xcode4 will be set up just how you want it, in a separate tab. You can even tear this tab off to a separate window, in which case Xcode4 will open a new specially configured "Debug" window each time you start a run! This feature is great because it keeps your regular code editing tab or window uncluttered with the log and debugger panes. Simply close the "Debug" window when you're done running and you can be back to your clean screen of code.
In XCode3, There was an option for "Rename the Project". Now, you just need to click twice ( second click slowly ) to rename the project & Its done.
To Limit the Number of Concurrent Build Operations
This is a (somewhat) hidden preference which allows you to define the number of concurrent compile tasks:
defaults write com.apple.dt.Xcode IDEBuildOperationMaxNumberOfConcurrentCompileTasks 4
To Disable Indexing in the IDE
This one disables code sense indexing, which can save a lot of resources in large projects:
defaults write com.apple.dt.XCode IDEIndexDisable 1
to reenable:
defaults delete com.apple.dt.XCode IDEIndexDisable
Note that you should quit Xcode, set the preference values as desired, changes take effect when you restart Xcode.
If you prefer using vim/emacs running on, say, Terminal, or any other external editor, you can just create your xcode project, add files and whatnot and then switch to editing said files using whichever edit suits you best; whenever you switch focus to an xcode4 window, the modified files will be reloaded( was also the case with Xcode3 ) and you can build / run your application.
Two kinds of Build location specification using XCode4 Preferences.
Location Specified By Targets - 'Build' Directory is located within your project directory.
Location in Derived Data ( Recommended by XCode, as you can see in screen shot ) - 'Build' Directory is located under DerivedData location specified ( e.g. here in my case, /Users/digicorp/Library/Developer/XCode/DerivedData )
Please look at following screen shots.
QUICK HELP
Ctrl + Option / Alt + f
Find the Quick help. For example,
#property (nonatomic, retain) NSString *strQuery;
My Text cursor is at NSString & if I press Ctrl + Option + f then It will show a quick documentation in the inspector/utilities.
I right-click in the Watch 1 window and select Add Watch but nothing happens.
It is very unintuitive. The command doesn't do anything beyond adding a new row and selecting it. You next type the name of the variable. More intuitive is right-clicking an identifier name in the editor window + Add Watch. Or drag + drop it into the Watch window.
Right click (in your code) on the variable or expression (select it) you want to watch. It will be added to the Watch window.
Little question, large answer! You give us few details of what is happening...
Summarizing, be sure that current statement is around the place where your desired watched variables are, so you can see them on debug mode, i.e.:
Place a break point near there (press F9). Remember that it must be where the variable exists (remember that on C/C++/C# a common variable created inside brackets ({ and }) will be inaccessible outside it - something like that occurs on other languages);
Run the program (F5) and do something that let you on the right place (like pressing a button that launches the function where there are variables you want to watch);
To choose a variable to watch, on debug you must press mouse right button on it and "add watch". "Walk towards" using debug functions step into (F11), step out (shift+F11), step over (F10) or run-until-next-break-point (F5).
I already know about Ctrl + L to delete an entire line...is there one to just select an entire line (which I can then copy and paste somewhere else...)
You can also use Ctrl + X to cut an entire line. Similarly, you can use Ctrl + C to copy an entire line.
As long as you don't have anything selected, the command will work on the entire line.
Hit
Home
Shift + End
You can do it with Shift + DownArrow.
Yes there is. If you are in the begining of the line press Shift+ End.
If you are in the end of the line press Shift+ Home.
Hope that helps
I believe, if you don't have any selection and press Ctrl + C, it would copy the line.
Shift + End = Select between cursor and the end of the line
It's Home+Home, then Shift+Down for me.
Or you change that setting which makes Ctrl+C with no selection copy the line. But I hate that, so I always turn it off. (Thanks to Bala for providing the link to that setting!)
To cut a line, Ctrl+L works in my keyboard settings.
There's also Alt-Up and Alt-Down to move whole lines. It's two fewer keystrokes than using Ctrl-X, and unlike Ctrl-X, it also moves multiple whole lines at a time if your selection covers multiple lines even partially. It's also nice because the feedback is instantaneous, unlike Ctrl-X where you can never remember whether the pasted line will go above or below your cursor.
I saw this and thought I'd never use the feature. But once I got used to it I use it all the time. There's no easier way to move a block of code than using Shift-Up/Down to select the lines, press Alt-Up/Down a few times to move them, and then use Tab to adjust the indentation.
Of course it only works within the same file though.
Visual Studio macros are another way to do these types of operations if you can't find an existing command. A simple way to create one is:
Use the Record TemporaryMacro option (under Tools/Macros).
Select the line however you prefer (e.g., home, shift, end).
Click Stop Recording (under Tools/Macros).
Choose Save TemporaryMacro (under Tools/Macros).
Then choose Tools/Customize/Keyboard and assign a shortcut to the macro.
It's not specifically a keyboard shortcut, but a triple-click will select a whole line of code.
This works in some other areas of Windows as well. In Chrome, for example, double-click selects a word, but triple-click selects a paragraph.
(This works in Visual Studio 2013 on Windows 7. Not sure about other versions/platforms.)
I use Ctrl + Insert to copy entire line, and Shift + Insert to paste entire line.
Other answers require either using a mouse or hitting more than one combination.
So I've created a macro for those who want a VSCode-like Ctrl+L behaviour. It can select multiple lines.
To use it, install Visual Commander extension for macros: https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=SergeyVlasov.VisualCommander
Then create a new command, select C# as a language and paste this code:
using EnvDTE;
using EnvDTE80;
public class C : VisualCommanderExt.ICommand
{
public void Run(EnvDTE80.DTE2 DTE, Microsoft.VisualStudio.Shell.Package package)
{
var ts = DTE.ActiveDocument.Selection as EnvDTE.TextSelection;
if (!ts.ActivePoint.AtStartOfLine)
ts.StartOfLine();
ts.LineDown(true, 1);
}
}
Now you can assign a desired shortcut in preferences:
Tested in VS 2022.
Triple-click to select the whole line. Then do what you want.
You can press Home + Shift + End to select the whole line as well.
If you want to copy the whole line then just press Ctrl + C. It will copy the whole line if nothing is selected.